Clearwater Christian Baseball Finishes Second in the Nation

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Cougars 2010-2011

CLEARWATER, FL (05/19/2011)(readMedia)-- The Clearwater Christian College baseball team finished second in nation at the NCCAA DII College World Series held May 11-14 at Prasco Park in Mason, OH. The series featured a double elimination tournament and included eight colleges from across the nation.

Clearwater Christian entered the tournament as #5 seed and soundly defeated #4 Manhattan Christian College of Manhattan, KS 11-1 in the opening game. In their second game, the Cougars was defeated by #1 seed Toccoa Falls College of Toccoa, GA 3-0 sending them into the loser's bracket.The road to the championship game was paved with victories over last year's defending champions and #2 seed Atlanta Christian College in East Point, GA (5-4), #3 seed Ohio Christian University in Circleville, OH (8-5), and #7 seed Dallas Christian College in Dallas, TX (8-6). Clearwater Christian secured second place in the tournament closer held Saturday morning May 14 with a 3-0 loss against Toccoa Falls College.

In addition to their runner-up award and plaque, Clearwater Christian was selected as the winner of the tournament Sportsmanship Award. CCC freshmen pitcher Isaiah Marsh and catcher Casey Nunez  were selected to the NCCAA National All-Tournament Team. Sophomore outfielder David Edwards and junior pitcher Brent Kirkley were named NCCAA All-Americans, and Kirkley was named National Pitcher of the Year. Senior third baseman Luke Harding  was named Scholar Athlete and was presented with the prestigious Hank Burbridge Unlimited Potential Christian Leadership Award for his contributions both on and off the field.

Head Coach Raul Hernandez had this to say about the team following the conclusion of the World Series: " I am very proud to be associated with a group of young men who made it their focus this week to use their gifts and talents to glorify God. These young men represented the Lord, their family and Clearwater Christian College at the highest level. As a coach this has been one of the highlights of my coaching career. This world series experience will profoundly change and mark all of us who were a part of the Cougar family."